The Joy of Medieval Dog Names

I recently read an article about medieval dog names found in a book called “The Names of All Manner of Hounds.” Someone was thinking about commercial appeal even in the 15th century.

How do you decide on a name for your dog? Once my family ran through a series of US general names: We had Patton and MacArthur and Ike, but I couldn’t bring myself to name a dog Schwatzkoff (sp?), so we then went with Sadie, Billy, Charley, Babe (she came to us already named), Justus, Ivy, Jazzy, and Toby. Why? We liked the sound of them.

Some of the medieval names are hilarious–and if you can’t read the Middle English spelling, just sound it out. First: Goodynowze. Apparently the dog was a good sniffer.

[Note: because I don’t know how to find photos of actual medieval dogs, I popped up some of mine. :-)]

Then there was Brayneles, who wasn’t the smartest dog in the pack.

Then there was Filthe, who apparently liked to roll in the mud. He was followed by Joliboye, who seems like good time guy, and Radissche, who must have liked to dig in the garden.

Some names are just fun to say: Tullymully, for instance. Try calling that name at the dog park.

And, for those who call their dog “Dog,” and their cat “Cat,” there’s a medieval version: Nameles. For the pet owner who’s uninspired.

What have you named your dogs over the years? Which names were your favorites?

–Angie